The present disclosure relates generally to medical devices and, more particularly, to airway devices, such as tracheal tubes.
This section is intended to introduce the reader to aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the present disclosure, which are described and/or claimed below. This discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with background information to facilitate a better understanding of the various aspects of the present disclosure. Accordingly, it should be understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and not as admissions of prior art.
Conventional tracheal tubes are supplied in standard lengths and sizes and are chosen for a patient mainly based on their size and age. Such tracheal tubes are typically used in conjunction with connectors, which facilitate coupling of the proximal end of the tracheal tube to tubing associated with a ventilator or an anesthesiology machine. These connectors typically include a cylindrical section of the standard fifteen millimeter size for mating with conventional tracheal tubes. Due to variability in patient size and differences in the sizes and lengths of conventional tracheal tubes, anesthesiologists often find it necessary to shorten the length of the proximal (external) end of the tracheal tube such that the end of the tracheal tube is closer to the intubation site. To this end, anesthesiologists often remove a portion of the tracheal tube by cutting, thus allowing the tracheal tube, any associated connectors and any auxiliary tubing to be easily attached to the patient, eliminating inadvertent movement during use.
Tracheal tubes are often placed in the airway of a patient in emergency medical situations, such as when a patient experiences cardiac or respiratory arrest, which necessitate protection of the airway from possible obstruction or occlusion in a timely manner. Oftentimes, tracheal tubes are supplied by the manufacturer with the connector already attached to the proximal end of the tracheal tube. Because shortening of such tubes requires the anesthesiologist to remove the connector from the proximal end of the tracheal tube, cut the tracheal tube, and reinsert the connector in the tracheal tube, valuable time is consumed in emergency situations. Additional time is often consumed because it can be difficult to reinsert conventional connectors back into the cut end of the tracheal tube. For instance, the traditional connector and tracheal tube T shown in FIG. 7 illustrate the drawbacks of conventional connectors. The extension E of the connector that must be reinserted into the tracheal tube T after cutting has an outer diameter d. To fit this end of the connector into the tracheal tube T, a flaring device must be used to expand the tracheal tube T from a normal opening size N to a flared opening size F. This flaring expands the inner diameter of the tube T to diameter D, such that the extension E of the connector may be reinserted into the tube T. Upon reinsertion of the traditional connector, the force required to pull the connector from the tube may be greatly reduced, thus increasing the risk of undesirable dislodging of the connector from the tracheal tube during use. This inadvertent dislodging can disconnect the ventilator, thus breaking the breathing circuit, which presents high risk to the patient. Accordingly, there exists a need for improved connectors that provide secure and efficient attachment and reattachment for tracheal tubes.